Boat engine



June 21, 1932., SPENCER 1,863,810

BOAT ENGINE INVENTOR [on/lam .5

ATTORN EY and particularly the stern.

lightness in weight for power developed it' Patented June 21, 1932LORILLARD SPENCER, OF NEW YORK, I\l'.

BOAT ENGINE Application filed October 9, 1929. Serial No. 398,432.-

This invention relates to engine installations for boats andparticularly to means whereby the conventional outboard motor can beused as an inboard installation.

More specifically, my invention contemplates a gear box or housing,including a propeller shaft with appropriate gearing for driving thesame, and means for securing the housing of the vertical drive shaft ofan outboard motor to the gear box, together with 'means for coupling thedrive shaft of the motor to the gear mechanism within the gear box. Ofcourse, the gear box will be appropriately mounted on a bed or the likewithin the hull of the boat.

Outboard motors today are powerful and capable of driving boats ofconsiderable size. Their use is not limited to small open boats as theywere originally. These motors have been successfully used as auxiliariesto sailing yachts of the smaller type but it has been a difiicultproblem just how to suspend or support these motors from such boatswithout alterations or additions to the hull of the boat Because of thehas long been recognized as very desirable to provide sailing yachts andthe like with the outboard motor, if it could be conveniently "30mounted. Such contraptions as Outriggers have been used, to which themotors are secured, and the outboard motors have been used as insideinstallations by providing a well on the inside of the boat in which theout-board motor and its propeller is suspended.

changes are undesirable. The present invention seeks to overcome the obect1ons and toprovide a practical. and efiicient installation withinthe'hull of the boat for the lightbut powerful outboard motors withoutin any way requiring the redesigning or altering of the hull of saidboat.

Obviously these heretofore necessary" reversing propeller mechanism,

lescribed for peller "driving mechanismf This arrangement permits thehinging or folding back of the lower end of the shaft casing includingthe propeller to facilitate the easy handling or transporting of theoutboard motor.

r'inotheradvantage is cheapnessin manufacturing cost.

An object of the present invention is to provide for securing in placeof the lower end of the drive shaft casing the improved form of gear boxto be hereinafter described in the present application, or conversely,the gear box including a propeller shaft extending out through the sternof the boat is mounted, in any preferred manner within the hull of theboat according to the shape and type of boat,

and the outboard motor with its lower portion and. propeller removed issecurely mounted on the top of this gear box, the necessary couplingbeing provided between the lower end ofthe motor drive shaft and thegearmechanism, whereby said gear mechanism and propeller will be drivenby the motor. r v Another object of my invention is to provide a gearbox and propeller arrangement with interchangeable mounting means, forthe motor and also interchangeable couplin betweenmotor shaft andgearingstub sha t to accommodate different sizes of motors, as well asmotors of different manufacture. A further object of the invention is toincorporate with the gear box or casing a water pump driven bythepropeller shaft, for supplyingthe necessary cooling waterto the enginecylinders V 7 Another exemplification of the, invention is theincorporating with the gear .box of 1a The invention is shown and asmall sail boat installation by way of example, although it will ofcourse be understood that the invention is not necessarilyflimited toany particular type or shape of bull or design. of boat. l

' Other and further objects of my invention will be apparent from thefollowing specificationtaken in connection-with the accompanyingdrawings, whereixi- Figure 1 is a plan view of the stern portion gearbox drive mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in detail, 1 represents the stern or after-endof a sail boat hull having properly located within the hull "a gear box2 supporting in one end of the box inappropriate bearings a propellershaft 3 to which is secured any .convenient type of propeller 4 theshaft passing through any preferred type of stern bearing 5.

The inner end of this propeller shaft within the gear box is providedwith a bevelled gear 6 adapted to mesh with'a bevelled gear 7 keyed to avertical stub shaft 8. This stub shaft 8 is rotatably mounted ina-supporting bearing-9 which in turn is supported within the gear box byradially disposed arms or the like 10, the outer ends of said arms beingsecured to the upper face or cover 11 of the gear box by suitable boltsor the like whereby the bearing 9 will be properly positioned andrigidly secured within the gear box or housing. The cover is intended tobe secured in place so as to be readily removable in any desired manner.

The lower section of the motor housing 12 carrying the conventionaloutboard propeller having been removed in the manner as hereinbeforereferred to, the upper section of the motor drive shaft casing 12housing the drive shaft 13 is secured to the upper face of the cover 11of the gear box by bolts or the like 14. As also previously stated, whenthe motor is to be used as an outboard motor the drive shaft 13 is soconstructed at this intersection as to forman interlocking joint withthe shaft driving the propeller when the lower section is brought up andclamped to the lower end of the housing.

In the present installation this lower end of the shaft, indicated inFigure 2 by the numeral 15, is adapted to interlock with a coupling 16to be keyed or oth'erwise locked to 'the head of the'stub shaft 8.Coupling 16 is removable and interchangeable so that couplings ofdifferent sizes may be used according to the size, style or power of'motor and shaft with which the gear box is to be used;

As has been indicated it is desirable to arrange the gear box so as toreadily accom- -modatediflferent size and different types ofmotors,'such as those of different manufacturers. With myimprovedarrangement this being one feasible solution thereof.

A rotary pump housing 17 enclosing a rotary or centrifugal pump 18 ofany preferred design is shown as being secured to and driven by thepropeller drive shaft and mounted within the gearbox Housing 17 may beformed on the inner face of that end ofthe gear box through which thepropeller shaft passes and concentric therewith, or the pump may bemounted any othensuitable place. This centrifugal pump is for thepurpose of supplying the necessary cooling water to the enginecylinders. The inlet end of said pump is provided with a" pipe 19extending outboard of the hull in the usual manner, and

the discharge outlet of the pump is connected to the usual supply pipe20 extending downwardly within the motor shaft casing 12. Since it isproposed to mount inboard a motor that normally is mounted outboardwhere a certain amount of air cooling is obtained in addition to thewater coolingthat is provided, I use a pump of a largercapacity thantheretofore provided for motors of that type thereby insuring anamplesupply of water to efficiently cool this type of motor. Thedischarge of the cooling water is through pipe 33 which maybe led out ofthe boat at any preferred point. I show the outlet adjacent thepropeller. i

Any preferred means may be provided for securing or anchoring the gearbox 2 within the hull but in the construction as illustrated said gearbox is provided with outwardly extending ears 21, whereby said gear boxis securely fastened to floor timbers or cross members 22 as moreclearly shown in Fig. 3.

Various means can also be provided supporting the motor within the boathull and tWo such means are shown in Figure 3 wherein struts or stayrods 23 are shown extending from the upper portion of the motor to thehull. of the boat. necessary means, being provided'for securing saidrodsto' the motor and to the hull. i

Another and more 'simple means for securing and supporting the motor isby pro vi ding a transverse beam or timber 24 having itsends properlyfastened or secured to the sides of the boat, said timberbeing so placedas to permit the motor. to be clamped thereto by the usual clampingmeans provided on motors of this type. V x

Referring to Figure 4 the drive shaftB is illustrated as a sleevesupporting at its outer end hub 25 of the propeller- Passingtransversely through this hub is a rotatable shaft 26 provided with abevelled gear 2'1". The propeller blades 4 are rigidly secured to theshaft 26 so that upon the rotation thereof the propeller blades will berotated about their individual axes. Mounted concentrically withinthehollow propeller shaft 3 is a shaft 28 having secured to its outer end abevelled gear 29 meshing with the bevelled gear 2?,

of said shaft 32 being constructed with a handle or the like 34providing one means of rotating the shaft 32 and in turn shaft 28.

\Vith the construction of gear box shown in the present application anoutboard motor can be used as an inboard installation without in any waymaterially altering the outboard motor and its associated mechanism andwithout in any way interfering with or preventing the subsequent use ofsaid motor as an outboard motor.

Inother words, by merely temporarily removing the lower portion of themotor drive shaft casing together with the propeller a used on theseoutboard motors, the upper portion of the casing and motor can beconveniently and readily mounted upon the upper face of the gear boxdescribed and the shaft of said motor will automatically couple with thestub shafts in the gear box. This simple interchanging of parts makes itpossible to use outboard motors on installations where it is desirableto have the motor within the boat as in the types of boat or boat hullsparticularly referred to in the foregoing specification, and also as thestandard outboard motor upon detachment from the described gear box andthe re-mounting of the lower casing with shaft and propeller.

Likewise by my invention various outboard motors put out by thedifferent motor manufacturers can be readily mounted upon the universalgear box I have described above.

With the described arrangements full advantage may be taken of thecompactness and lightness of weightof the outboard motor to makeadvantageous inboard installations and particularly in boats where ithas not heretofore been practical to make inboard installations.

Modifications may be made in the arrangement and location of partswithin the spirit and scope of my invention, and such modifications areintended to be covered by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a motor installation for boats, the combination with a gearmechanism rigidly secured within said boat including a propeller shaftextending through the hull of the boat, of an outboard motor removablymounted adjacent said gear mechanism, a water pump mounted within saidboat having connections through the hull of-said boat and circulatingcooling water for said motor, and means for connecting the drive shaftof said motor to said gear mechanism.

2. In a motor installation for boats, the combination with a gearmechanism rigidly secured within said boat including a. propeller shaftof the reversible propeller type extending through the hull of the boat,of an outboard motor removably mountedadjacent said gear mechanism,means for'connecting the drive shaft of said motor to said gearmechanism and means within the boat for reversing said propeller.

3. In a motor installation for boats, the combination with a box orcasing rigidly secured within said boat, of a gear mechanism within saidcasing,a propeller shaft having its inner end mounted in said casing andconnected to said gearmechanism and its outer end extending through thehull of the boat, means for reversing the propeller, an outboard motorremovably mounted on said casing, means for connecting the drive shaftof the motor to said gear mechanism, and means within the boat foractuating the propeller reversing means.

at. In a motor installation for boats, the combination with a box orcasing rigidly secured within said boat, of a gear mechanism within saidcasing, a propeller shaft having its inner end mounted in said casingand connected to said gear mechanism and its outer end extending throughthe hull of the boat, an outboard motor removably mounted on said casingand means for connecting the drive shaft of the motor to said gearmechanism, said means being interchangeable to accommodate drive shaftsof various sizes.

5. A gear box for boatsincluding a gear mechanism and an inboardpropeller shaft, means for removably mounting an outboard motor on saidgear box and means for coupling the vertical drive shaft of said motorto said gear mechanism, said means being interchangeable to accommodatedrive shafts of various size motors.

6. A gear box for boats including agear mechanism and an inboardpropeller shaft, and means for coupling a vertical drive shaft to saidgear mechanism, said means being removable and interchangeable toaccommodate drive shafts or various sizes.

7. A gear box for boats including a gear mechanism and a propellershaft, a water pump associated with said box, inlet and outletconnections for said pump, and means for coupling a vertical drive shaftto said gear mechanism, the coupling means being inter:

changeable with different motors to be connected with the gear box.

8. A gear box for boats including a gear mechanism havin a drive shaftand operating a propeller s aft, a cover for said box having means forremovably mounting a motor thereon, and means coupling the drive shaftand motor, the cover being interchange able with different motors to bemounted on said gear box.

9; A gear box for boats comprising a gear mechanism having a drive shaftand operating a propeller shaft, and a cover for said box having meansfor reinovaly mounting a motor thereon and means for coupling a motor tosaid drive shaft, the cover with coupling means being interchangeable toaccommodate different motors to be mounted on said gear box. V

10. The combination with an internal combustion engine having a powershaft, of a gear box having mounted therein a gear mechanism,-a driveshaft therefor and a propeller shaft operated thereby, means forcoupling the power and drive shafts, and a cover for-said box upon whichsaid engine is removably mounted, said coverbeing removable and.interchangeable with different engines to.be mounted on said gear box.

11. The combination with an internal c'ombustion engine having a powershaft, of a gear box having mounted therein a gear mechanism, a driveshaft therefor and a propeller shaft operated thereby, a cover for saidbox upon which said engine is removably mounted, and means carried bysaid cover for coupling the power and drive shafts together, said coverwith its coupling means being removable and'interchangeable withdifferent engines to be mounted on said gear box.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

'LORILLARD SPENCER.

